Want to switch up how you work? Here’s how.
Is life more than the 9 to 5? Is there a way to maintain your current career and try something else without risking it all? YES.
Change Consultant Mariebelle tells us how. Find the full conversation in Episode 16 of Fire and Forte.
Mariebelle in her home office, complete with analogue Kanban board from the Agile way of working.
I need a change!
If you are in your forties, it’s likely you’ve been working for almost two decades. Where did that time go?
Whether you’ve had children, changed careers or worked your way up the ladder, you might be at a stage where you want to reassess what to do next.
“In my thirties, I gave work everything, I worked crazy hours. By the time I was in my forties I started to ask myself “is this it?”
Mariebelle Malo was working in a 9 to 5 corporate career that was going very well but heading in a familiar direction when she began to think she wanted to try something else. Along with a friend, they came up with the idea of a job sharing platform - helping people move to a job share as they looked to reduce their work days whether due to caring for children, or working less in the years preceding retirement.
As it worked out, Mariebelle ended up testing a job share solution with her employer to afford her the time to work on her start up. Helpful huh?
How to approach your employer
Whether it’s to start a side hustle, be around loved ones more, travel; changing your work life is now becoming more acceptable. Arguably a good thing to come out of the pandemic, new business models have begun to arise as businesses found they could operate in different non-traditional ways. Now as more people look to manage their wellbeing and get more from life, the drivers to change are wide ranging.
But, how do you ask? Mariebelle shares her tips.
Be transparent
If you are starting a side hustle whilst employed, be sure to inform you employer. Explaining it won’t take time up from your day job, that it’s uncompetitive, to help ensure there are no surprises.
Consider the goodwill you have at your company
Especially if you have been with a business for a while, you are likely to have a pool of goodwill with the business. Many don’t realise this and think they have to leave if they wish to start something new. Remember this and whether its asking for some time off, a flexible arrangement, or even advice, its certainly work talking to them.
Flexible work solutions
If you’re looking to reduce your hours, think about the options out there and do your research. Is it going part time? Is it a job share? Is it a compressed week where you work the same hours but in less days? If you need to release some time from the day job, spend time to think about the different ways you can do this, and try to foresee any problems and how to solve for them. Maybe it is a job that needs full coverage Monday to Friday, if so, think how a job share could work. TOP TIP - Mariebelle introduces the idea of a vertical job share, a more senior and more junior colleague share a role. Worth looking into.
Test, Trial, Share the risk!
“My partner recently proposed a compressed week to his employer, they’ve agreed to test it for 3 months, that’s been great, now its just the way things are done as it worked” says Mariebelle.
Change is often daunting, put yourself in the shoes of your employer who will need to consider what happens if things don’t work or if other employees request for the same arrangement. A trial can help all parties. The risk is shared, but lessons can also be learnt, shared, solved for.
Keep in touch
Whether it’s parental leave or a sabbatical, if you take time out, Mariebelle suggests keeping in contact with your employer. “Its important to put yourself in your employers shoes, not to come back entitled, as you may be disappointed. Help work together on a solution together for your return”. Keeping in touch means things can evolve as changes may also happen at the business, ultimately it means you can help construct a solution that works best for you and the business or organisation you work for.
And everyones happy!
Food for thought. Good luck in your ventures all.
